On September 13, 1969, four mystery-solving teenagers, one easily frightened Great Dane and a brightly colored van called the Mystery Machine made their television debut in Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!

Fifty-seven years later, it occurs to us that they may have missed a town.

Mount Dora has nearly everything required for a classic Scooby-Doo episode: a Victorian mansion overlooking downtown, a sprawling 42-room estate just outside of it, a historic hotel that has been welcoming travelers since the 1800s, real paranormal investigations, a lighthouse, a cypress-covered canal and, somehow, a restaurant called The Goblin Market.

We are not suggesting Mount Dora has a monster problem.

We are simply saying that if the Mystery Machine ever rolls into town, the gang will have plenty to investigate.

Every Good Mystery Needs a Mansion

The most obvious place to begin is the Donnelly House. Built in 1893 for John P. Donnelly, who later became Mount Dora’s first mayor, the elaborate Queen Anne-style home has been one of downtown’s defining landmarks for well over a century. Its steep rooflines, detailed trim, porches and unmistakable tower helped earn it the nickname of Donnelly’s “gingerbread house.”

By daylight, it is one of Mount Dora’s most recognizable historic buildings. After dark, it becomes very easy to imagine Fred suggesting that everyone split up.

The funny part is that visitors really can investigate it. Mount Dora Ghost Tours offers paranormal investigation experiences inside the Donnelly House, meaning one of the most Scooby-Doo-looking buildings in town is also a place where people actually show up with equipment looking for answers.

And the Donnelly House is only the beginning.

Roughly 10 minutes away sits Sydonie Mansion, whose history stretches back to the 1880s. A major redesign beginning in 1903 transformed the property into a 42-room, 22,000-square-foot estate with architecture inspired in part by Spain’s Alhambra. The surrounding property once included elaborate gardens, citrus groves, a dairy farm, its own power plant and even a bowling alley.

Then came another chapter. From 1942 until 1980, the mansion served as Ewell Hall, a boarding house for girls attending Hampden DuBose Academy.

A 42-room historic mansion that once served as a boarding school already sounds like the setup to an episode. Fortunately, visitors today can explore the property through guided historic tours without having to unmask anyone before they leave.

Check In Somewhere With a Little History

Eventually, even Mystery Inc. would need somewhere to stay, and Mount Dora has a fitting option there too.

Lakeside Inn traces its history to 1883, when the community around Lake Dora consisted of only a handful of families. What began as the 10-room Alexander House grew alongside the town into the sprawling yellow lakefront property visitors recognize today. Former President Calvin Coolidge and First Lady Grace Coolidge spent an extended vacation there in 1930, adding another chapter to a hotel that has been part of Mount Dora’s story for more than 140 years.

Its wide porches, rocking chairs, historic buildings, old trees and lakefront setting already feel like another era. It also happens to be where American Ghost Adventures begins its Mount Dora paranormal experiences.

At that point, the fictional premise starts feeling almost unnecessary.

Follow the Mystery Down to the Water

The rest of Mount Dora does not exactly hurt the argument. From downtown, the streets slope toward the lake, passing historic storefronts, the old railroad corridor and the 1915 train depot before opening onto the waterfront. Continue toward Grantham Point and the Mount Dora lighthouse, then onto the Palm Island Boardwalk beneath the trees.

During the day, it is one of the prettiest walks in town.

After sunset, with Lake Dora stretching into the darkness, it becomes considerably easier to understand why Mount Dora works so well for this particular thought experiment.

And because this is Florida, the mystery does not even have to stay on land.

Premier Boat Tours and Rusty Anchor both give visitors a chance to see Mount Dora from the water, where the setting changes almost immediately. Cruise across Lake Dora and into the Dora Canal and the scenery shifts beneath a canopy of towering cypress trees, with alligators, turtles and wading birds appearing along the way.

A swamp monster would be fictional.

The setting absolutely is not.

If Mystery Inc. ever had to trade the Mystery Machine for a boat, Mount Dora has that part covered too.

And Then, Obviously, Feed Shaggy and Scooby

Of course, there is one final problem every Scooby-Doo episode eventually has to solve: Shaggy and Scooby are hungry.

Mount Dora is extremely well prepared for that emergency.

The Goblin Market almost feels too obvious. A restaurant with that name tucked into historic downtown sounds like something created for the episode, yet it has long been part of Mount Dora’s dining scene. From there, the town offers plenty of pizza, burgers, sandwiches, fries, sweets and ice cream to keep the pair occupied while Velma figures out the actual mystery.

And that is ultimately why the comparison works.

Mount Dora does not need fake cobwebs or an invented haunted castle to look the part. The Victorian house is real. The 42-room mansion is real. The 19th-century hotel is real. The paranormal investigations are real. The lighthouse, boardwalk and cypress-covered canal are real.

The town already has the setting.

All we are missing is the Mystery Machine.

So, 57 years after Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! first hit television, consider this an invitation.

Scooby-Doo, where are you?

We have a few places in Mount Dora you may want to investigate.